Color imparting dispenser for aerosol products



M. K. JORDAN Nov. 28, 1967 COLOR IMPARTING DISPENSER FOR AEROSOLPRODUCTS Filed Feb. 25, 1966 44 l N VEN TOR. MAHLON K. JORDAN B Y W ATTORNE Y5 United States Patent 3,355,071 COLOR IMPARTING DISPENSER FORAEROSOL PRODUCTS Mahion K. Jordan, Berkeley, Calif., assignor to AvosetCompany, Oakland, Calif., a corporation of California Filed Feb. 23,1966, Ser. No. 529,495 1 Claim. (Cl. 222-190) ABSTRACT OF THE DISCLOSUREAn aerosol container including a product dispensing spout in which acylindrical pellet containing a coloring and/ or flavoring agent isdisposed so as to impart such coloring and/or flavoring to the productbeing dispensed through the spout.

This invention relates generally to the dispensing of foam typematerials, such as whipped cream topping, from an aerosol container, andis more particularly directed to a dispenser for this purpose which isarranged to impart a coloring or flavoring agent to the aerosol productas it is dispensed from the container.

Various foam type materials, such as whipped cream, are available to theconsumer in aerosol containers. The material is sealed within thecontainer in a fluid pressure atmosphere and released therefrom bydepressing a valve element away from a normally sealed dischargeopening. To facilitate release of the valve and convenient dispensing ofthe material from the container, a dispensing cap or similar dispensingmechanism is typically mounted on the top of the container in operableassociation with the valve. The cap, may, for example, include a levermember having a depending release pin for engaging the valve elementwhen the lever member is depressed. The cap is further typicallyprovided with a discharge spout in which the aerosol product releasedfrom the open Valve opening is foamed and channeled for discharge. Thecap thus facilitates the dispensing of the foamed aerosol product fromthe spout to a desired location in response to depression of the lever.

In some instances it is advantageous that an agent such as coloring and/or flavoring be imparted to the foamed product as it issues from thespout of a dispensing cap such as that described above. For example,with whipped cream it is often desirable that some be colored in orderto impart a decorative and festive appearance to a dessert, or the like.

It is, therefore, an object of the present invention to provide a meansfor incorporation in an aerosol container dispensing cap to impart acoloring or flavoring agent to the aerosol product as it flows throughthe cap.

Another object of the invention is the provision of a coloring and/ orflavoring mechanism of the class described which is extremely simple andmay be readily incorporated in existing dispensing caps.

Still another object of the invention is to provide a coloring mechanismof the class described which is arranged to vary the intensity of thecoloring in accordance with the speed at which the aerosol product isdispensed.

It is a further object of the invention to provide coloring mechanismswhich can be interchangeably employed in dispensing caps to impartdifferent colorings to the whipped cream or other aerosol product beingdispensed.

The invention possesses other objects and features of ad vantage, someof which, with the foregoing, will be set forth in the followingdescription of the preferred form of the invention which is illustratedin the drawings accompanying and forming part of the specification. Itis to be understood, however, that variations in the showing made by thesaid drawings and description may be adopted within the scope of theinvention as set forth in the claim.

FIGURE 1 is an elevational view with portions brokenaway of a dispensingcap with a coloring and/ or flavoring mechanism in accordance with thepresent invention.

FIGURE 2 is a bottom exploded perspective view of the dispensing cap andcoloring mechanism.

FIGURE 3 is a view similar to FIGURE 1, but with the cap in valveopening dispensing position.

Referring now to the drawing, FIGURE 1 in particular, there is shown aconventional aerosol can 11 having a domed top 12 formed with a centralrecess 13. More particularly, the recess is defined by a ring 14depending from an upper opening 16 of the can top and having its lowerend secured to a domed valve closure plate 17. To permit dispensing ofthe contents of the can, the center portion of the closure plate isprovided with an aperture 18 which may be provided with an annulareyelet or gasket 19 which serves as a valve seat. A strap 21 formed offlat spring-like material is secured at its opposite end todiametrically opposed points of the lower margin of the plate 17 toextend diametrically thereof subjacent the upper domed portion of theplate. The center portion of the strap is formed with a ball-likeprojection 22, in the nature of a valve member, which in the normalposition of the parts is seated against the valve seat 19 to seal theaperture 18. However, due to the resiliency of the strap 21, the lattermay be flexed downwardly to cause movement of the valve 22 away from theseat 19 and thus permit the pressurized aerosol product within the canto be discharged through the aperture 18.

To effect the above-noted movement of the valve 22 out of engagementwith the valve seat 19, and dispensing of the can contents, a dispensingcap 23, of generally conventional design is mounted upon the top 12. Thecap is of unitary design formed from a flexible, yieldable material suchas polyethylene, which is capable of being de formed and then regainingits shape once pressure is released therefrom. The cap has a flat top 24and a downwardly flanged peripheral rim or skirt 26. The bottom of theskirt is formed with a continuous groove 27 of a size to snugly receivea rolled head 28 provided on the can top 12 in circumscribing relationto the recess 13. In this manner, the cap is removably secured upon thecan top with a leak proof fit in closing relation to the recess. Depending from the center of the flat top 24 of the cap, there is provided avalve actuating pin 29 which is disposed in alignment with aperture 18with its tip normally closely spaced from the valve projection 22, asshown in FIG- URE 1. Thus, if the central portion of the cap is causedto be deformed downwardly, as shown in FIGURE 2, the pin engages thevalve 22 to force same out of sealing engagement with the seat 19. Thepressurized contents of the can are thus discharged through the aperture18.

To facilitate the depression of the cap and engagement actuation of thevalve 22, the upper surface of the cap top 2 1 is provided with anintegral horizontally extending lever member 31. The lever is providedwith an extension 32 spaced from the top 24 radially outwardly from thecenter thereof, such extension being preferably provided with areenforcing rib 33 depending from the underside thereof.

The cap structure is completed by a vertically extending spout 34adjacent the cap periphery and in communication with an opening 36through the cap top 24.

With the substantially conventional aerosol can 11 and dispensing cap 23provided as just described, the contents of the can are dispensed fromthe spout 34 in response to depression of the lever member 31. In thisregard, the pin 29 depresses the valve member 22 out of engagement withthe seat 19, whereupon the pressurized contents of the can flow throughthe aperture 18 into the void enclosed by the cap. Foaming of theproduct occurs in the void and in the interior of spout 34 as theproduct is discharged therefrom.

In accordance with the particularly salient aspects of the presentinvention, a mass or pellet 37 of material including a coloring and/ orflavoring agent is disposed within the spout 34. As the whipped cream,or other aerosol product flows through the spout, the coloring and/orflavoring agent of the pellet 37 is imparted to the ribbon of theproduct issuing from the spout tip. Preferably, the pellet 37 is ofhollow cylindrical configuration including a bore 38 to facilitate thefree passage of the product therethrough. The pellet may, for example,be formulated of a mixture of granular sugar and food coloring. In thiscase, the pellet being soluble in the whipped cream, or other productpassing through the bore 38, deposits the coloring along the surface ofthe product ribbon being dispensed through the spout 34. Simultaneously,the dissolving sugar of the pellet somewhat sweetcns the product. Itwill be appreciated that the pellet may contain various flavoringextracts, or the like, in the presence or absence of the coloring, tovariously flavor the product as desired. As an alternative to the sugarformulation, the pellet may be formed of a variety of porous materialscapable of being impregnated with a coloring and/or flavoring agent.Foamed plastics, such as polyurethane foam, are particularly well suitedto this purpose. Whatever the particular formulation of the pellet 37,it should be noted that the intensity of the coloring and/ or flavoringaction varies inversely with the speed of dispensing the product throughthe spout 34. The slower the dispensing speed, the greater the amount ofcoloring and/ or flavoring imparted to the product. As an additionalfeature of the invention, different colorings and/ or flavorings of theproduct are readily derived by interchangeable employment of differentpellets in the spout. This is simply accomplished by removing thedispensing cap 23 from the can 11, withdrawing the existing pellet fromthe spout, inserting another pellet having different coloring and/orflavoring characteristics, and replacing the cap in position on the topof the can for further dispensing service.

In order that pellets 37 of adequate size and capacity to color and/ orflavor the entire contents of the can may be readily and interchangeablypositioned in the spout 34, a somewhat modified design of the latterfrom that employed in conventional dispensing caps is advantageouslyincorporated in the cap 23. More particularly, the lower end of thespout 34 is formed with a pocket 39 extending into the underside of thetop wall 24 for removably receiving the pellets 37. In this regard, theopening 36 preferably extends from the pin 29 to the inner periphery ofthe skirt 26, so as to be of relatively large diameter. The base 41 ofthe spout extends uniformly upwardly from the opening and is inwardlytapered in an intermediate transition region 42 terminating in a uniformreduced diameter discharge end portion 43 having circumferentiallyspaced longitudinally extending slots 44. The spout is of a uniform wallthickness, and thus the pocket 39 as defined by the interior of thespout includes a uniform diameter cylindrical bore portion within base41 terminating upwardly in a tapered stop shoulder within transitionregion 42. The length and diameter of the uniform bore portion of thepocket are substantially equal to those of the pellet 37. Thus, thepellet abuts the tapered shoulder upon being fully inserted in thepocket and is retained therein with a snug fit. The pellet can be easilywithdrawn from the pocket and another pellet inserted therein. By virtueof the relatively large diameter of the pocket, pellets having arelatively large wall thickness commensurate with a coloring 'and/ orflavoring agent capacity sufficient to color and/ or flavor the entirecontents of the can are readily employed therein.

What is claimed is:

In an aerosol container having a valve adjacent the upper end thereofand normally maintaining the container in a closed condition, a capmember overlying said valve and including an integral valve actuatordepending therefrom and movable to unseat said valve upon downwardmovement thereof, said cap member including a top wall and a peripheralskirt releasably engageable with said container, said top wall having anintegral dispensing spout extending upwardly therefrom intermediate saidactuator and said skirt, said spout having a diametrically reducedportion adjacent its upper distal end, a pellet containing a coloringand/or flavoring positioned in said spout of cylindrical configurationto engage the inner bore of said spout and of a diameter preventingpassage thereof through said reduced portion, and said pellet having anaxial bore therethrough in alignment with said spout bore.

References Cited UNITED STATES PATENTS 2,772,819 12/1956 Poarch et a1222-402.11 3,083,916 4/1963 Neel 239-315 3,255,691 6/ 1966 Schwartz eta1. 99-291 FOREIGN PATENTS 723,681 2/1955 Great Britain.

ROBERT B. REEVES, Primary Examiner.

F. R. HANDREN, Assistant Examiner.

